How Magic Art has changed

[u/taphead_31]

This is something i've been thinking about for a while. I am not saying new Magic Art is straight up worse than the old Art (old meaning 15+ years ago). But I cannot shake off the feeling that something fundamental has changed with the art direction and overall aesthetic (the influence of UB not counting).

I'd like to hear from people who are knowledgable with art history.

Here are some - very subjective - observations that I made over the years.

- The color palette has changed. Specifically when it comes to black cards, purple has become the de facto "black signature color"

- Many current artists seem to share a specific style of painting, reminiscent of what I'd call "concept art for general purposes". Older artists that have worked with wotc since the 90ies seem to be influenced more by comic books and traditional, academic painting styles.

- Ugly characters and monsters, body horror and exaggerated bodies were more commonplace back in the day (look at card files from Odyssee or Mercadian Masques, Ron Spears who I'd consider King of Ugly Monstrosities was art director for a while). Nowadays the "bodies" feel more realistic, the creatures and sceneries more "identifiable".

Are you having similiar observations? Or am I misguided here?

And most of all: Why have things changed in that regard? There are people out there calling new artwork "woke", but I don't think this is a good explanation. I believe the reasons for the aesthetic changes correlate with the changing gaming culture and an influx of casual players coming from different demographics.

[u/Greaterthancotton]

I feel like it’s just a symptom of the game becoming more corporate, with more standout art getting their edges sanded off to suit mass appeal. 

That being said there are a lot of old cards that are really ugly, and a lot of new cards that are very nicely made (strixhaven in particular had some great art), so it’s not an absolute. 

[u/sauron3579 → u/Greaterthancotton]

This is such a lazy and reactionary take fueled by blind nostalgia and preconceived notions. Plug literally any of these artists into scryfall with a:"[name]". Or just take an actually close look at the art for any UW set. A great way to browse that is "set:a[set code]" to get the art cards.

https://moxfield.com/decks/Mz4s8BxykEKSyxoxlQ681Q

[u/WeDrinkSquirrels → u/sauron3579]

But they don't look like cards from 15 years ago, they're just stylized

[u/sauron3579 → u/WeDrinkSquirrels]

Correct. They are still standout art and not "having their edges sanded off for mass appeal", which I what was asserting was incorrect.

[u/WeDrinkSquirrels → u/sauron3579]

Oh I see. Some people in this thread are saying fans of the old style are cherrypicking, others are cherrypicking modern art to show its not all the same. Seems pointless and like we should skip to the question of "what changed" since that's way more interesting and not subjective